Formerly the site of a sugar plantation, this serene park opposite Tulane and Loyola universities served as a Union encampment during the Civil War and as the site of the 1884 World's Cotton Centennial, which sparked residential development of uptown New Orleans. Today it's an extraodinarily popular urban oasis, with a broad walking path, an excellent golf course and several play areas for kids. Exposition Boulevard, a pleasant footpath on the downtown side of the park, skirts a row of elegant residences.